As the students of Arius stepped aside, a girl in white approached us. Her long hair, fading from white to pink at the ends, reached her knees. Her face was sweet and adorable, like a princess straight out of a fairy tale picture book.
SAUCE
I couldn't help but call out her na. "Mika…"
"Hey, hey, didn't I tell you not to be so familiar?" The girl laughed softly, shaking her head. "Call Misono-san, okay, sensei?"
Misono Mika, leader of the Pater faction of the Tea Party, was known to the world as soone not skilled in politics.
She claid she only wanted to reconcile with Arius, hoping to stop the Eden Treaty while repeatedly saring Nagisa's image in words. According to Azusa's testimony, she was tricked by Arius into cooperating.
But now, it seed things were not that simple…
Just as I had feared.
"By the way, the Justice Task Force won't be coming back, you know? After all, I specifically issued a standby order again."
Mika, as usual, chattered on. "Ah, can you believe it, taking Nagi-chan off campus at a ti like this? Everyone was totally shocked when they heard the news~☆
"What's Nagi-chan thinking? Usually, when going out, wouldn't she have her guards with her and the Justice Task Force on alert nearby?
"Could it be… that she suddenly decided to go on a double date with you, sensei? Hahaha~ She's that fond of your face—pretty, sure, but honestly, it's nothing extraordinary. Nagisa-chan's taste is surprisingly questionable~
"Anyway… an opportunity this rare can't be wasted. But managing all the details, issuing Tea Party orders to every corner, removing every factor that might interfere with , that really took a lot of effort.
"Still, I have to thank you, sensei."
The girl laughed lightly. "Otherwise, who knows when I'd ever get the chance to properly ambush Nagisa-chan~"
Hearing that, the tension I had been holding finally released.
Hanako murmured, "A mber of the Tea Party… Misono Mika…"
"Well, simply put, this is the big reveal. ☆ That's the feeling, right?" Mika spoke lightly, conveying a truth heavy enough to shock anyone.
"I am the true [Traitor of Trinity]."
The room fell utterly silent.
Mika scanned our expressions and nodded with satisfaction. "Now, back to the main point. Can you tell where Nagisa-chan is being hidden? I don't have much ti. Of course, I could just defeat everyone here and take my ti finding her, but that would be troubleso, right…"
"Mika!!!"
A roar filled with anger and grief, deafening enough to drown out Mika's voice.
I turned to see Nagisa, struggling with a sprained ankle, ignoring Serina's attempts to stop her, stepping out from her hiding place. Tears welled at the corners of her eyes, uncertain whether her pain was physical or emotional, as she demanded loudly to the slightly stunned Mika:
"Why! Are you doing this!?"
"…Hehe." Mika was montarily stunned, then returned to her calm smile. "Nagisa-chan, you've always been like this since you were little, quick to lose your temper. What's the matter? Surprised that the traitor is ?"
In the deathly silence, the two of them stared into each other's eyes.
"Yes." Finally, the anger faded, replaced by a different emotion. Nagisa lowered her gaze first, letting out a bitter laugh. "I never expected it would be you. Mika, why?"
"Could there be any other reason?" Mika countered. "I want to ask Nagisa-chan and Seia-chan, why would you sign a peace agreent with those Gehenners? (Slur Terms). There are limits to joking, you know. Just imagining the outco is terrifying. Surely you'd be betrayed, right? A single turn of the back, and you'd be stabbed. I wouldn't allow sothing like that to happen."
Nagisa said coldly, "Then what you're doing now… isn't that the sa? Betraying after I entrusted my trust to you?"
Mika laughed. "Exactly. That's the price of trusting others. In the end, I'm still just 'another person.' And that proves my point right."
"No, that proves you're wrong."
I interjected. "It's precisely because you can't trust others that things have turned out this way, Misono Mika."
"Sensei…" Nagisa whispered, feeling a pang of sha at her own actions.
"Don't you think you're killing the mood?"
Mika frowned, scolding . "Suddenly saying sothing strange while I'm talking to Nagi-chan. Ha, this isn't so rose-tinted high school romance story. Nagisa-chan is kind and straightforward, it's inevitable she doesn't realize the chaos she lives in. And you're supposed to be an adult, right? I've long thought that hanging around young girls all day makes you hardly seem grown-up. Don't you know about avoiding suspicion?"
After her tirade, she suddenly added as if recalling sothing, "By the way, you're close with Gehenna too. Ha, no wonder you and Nagisa-chan got along so well… And Seia-chan."
ntioning Seia made the atmosphere slightly heavier.
"Hey, sensei."
Mika looked at , though her gaze seed to land elsewhere. Abruptly, she asked, "Why did Seia-chan's halo break that day?"
I didn't know how to answer. Should I tell Mika that Seia was actually safe, hiding in a safe house?
But my silence was misunderstood.
"Ah, I thought for a very long ti, and finally understood why Seia-chan suffered that fate… It's all your fault."
Suddenly pointed at, I felt bewildered and doubtful.
Why would Mika think that? Could she have eavesdropped on my conversation with Nagisa? But if that were the case, she should have prepared to ambush Nagisa earlier, not wait for Azusa to pretend to contact Arius according to the plan.
My doubt was quickly answered.
Mika's lips curved into a smile. "It's because Seia-chan trusted you too much, and at that mont, you did nothing, so she suffered that misfortune. Even that proud, always-in-control Seia-chan couldn't trust anyone. Yes, this world operates by that very law. ☆"
I see… it could be explained that way?
I was at a loss for words, once again deeply aware of Mika's astonishing intelligence.
Sigh… pink hair…
"All right, we've wasted enough ti." Mika sighed, speaking calmly. "If there's anything else you don't understand, ask now while we're at it."
User Comments
0 comments from readers